UFCW Union members who work at the Hormel plant in Knoxville voted to ratify a contract that includes the largest wage increase in the plant’s history. 

In addition to gaining hourly wage increases of $4 per hour, the new contract nearly doubles bereavement leave, protects health care coverage, and increases both pension and 401K benefits. According to UFCW Union Rep Mark McRoberts, “this victory could not have happened without the hard work of the members at the Knoxville plant. While we celebrate this historic and much-deserved victory, the work will continue. We will dedicate ourselves to enforcing this contract and ensuring that Hormel lives up to their commitments over the next four years.”

Hormel Corporation released a statement earlier in the week regarding the negotiations.

“We are pleased that we have reached a new, four-year tentative agreement with the union representing our team members in Knoxville, Iowa. We are proud to continuously invest in our people in recognition of the work they do to put the safe, quality food that consumers trust and need on tables across the globe. We appreciate the negotiators on both sides of the table who bargained in good faith to reach this tentative agreement, and we are hopeful the contract will be ratified in the upcoming vote this week.” 

United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) is the largest private Union in the United States representing 1.3 million workers in all 50 states.